Grandmother arrested for female infanticide

Police arrested a woman for killing her granddaughter in Krishnagiri district on Monday. She was upset after her daughter-in-law gave birth to her second daughter, police said.

Police identified the accused as Pottiyammal of Barur near Pochampalli in Krishnagiri district.

Pottiyammal’s daughter-in-law Shantha, 21, delivered her second daughter on May 23, 2018.

On August 8, 2018, officials at Barur Primary Health Centre requested Shantha to produce the infant before them for vaccination. When family members did not turn up, officials questioned them. They lied that the infant was at her aunt’s house at Alappatti in the district.

After officials found that the infant had died, the Barur police led by inspector K Kapilan conducted inquiry for the past few months and arrested the infant’s paternal grandmother Pottiyammal for murder. The accused gave pesticide to the infant and killed her within two months of birth. tnn